Board votes against more money for project

Published: Wednesday, February 27, 2013 at 04:19 PM.

"I don’t feel that all the bidders knew what they were bidding for," he said. "I don’t think everyone was on the same page here."

Commissioner Jim Stuart made a motion to accept the low bid, and the motion was seconded by Walsh.

However, Mayor Jimmy Sanders said that the amount of the bid was 50 percent higher than what had been budgeted.

"That sounds like a huge disparity to me," he said. "You can solve this by rebidding it with more specifics."

Liner, with fellow commissioners Will Lewis and Karen Lewis, voted against Stuart’s motion to accept the bid.

Bill Ebron, public services director, and Havelock Police Chief G. Wayne Cyrus, whose department oversees the operation of the animal shelter, have said the project is needed. With that in mind, Ebron told the board the project would be put out for bidding again with more specifics.

The Havelock Board of Commissioners isn’t ready to let a planned expansion to the animal shelter go to the dogs.

Commissioners rejected the idea of spending an extra $23,860 on the expansion during their meeting Monday night and have instead decided to advertise the project with more specific details in an effort to get a lower price.

The plans called for three additional dog storage spaces, a storage/euthanasia room, unisex bathroom and separate room for cats. Last year, commissioners approved $42,600 for the project designed to address overcrowding issues at the existing animal shelter.

The city put the project out for bids and only two came in, ranging from $66,460 to $103,000. Four other potential bidders passed on the project and did not submit bids.

Commissioner Danny Walsh said that if the $66,460 bid from Osprey Construction was reasonable, the city should accept it.

"If somebody puts out a bid and it’s within reason, and nobody wants to do it any cheaper, then that’s the cost of doing business in the government," Walsh said.

However, Commissioner George Liner said the project plans may have not been specific enough.

"I don’t feel that all the bidders knew what they were bidding for," he said. "I don’t think everyone was on the same page here."

Commissioner Jim Stuart made a motion to accept the low bid, and the motion was seconded by Walsh.

However, Mayor Jimmy Sanders said that the amount of the bid was 50 percent higher than what had been budgeted.

"That sounds like a huge disparity to me," he said. "You can solve this by rebidding it with more specifics."

Liner, with fellow commissioners Will Lewis and Karen Lewis, voted against Stuart’s motion to accept the bid.

Bill Ebron, public services director, and Havelock Police Chief G. Wayne Cyrus, whose department oversees the operation of the animal shelter, have said the project is needed. With that in mind, Ebron told the board the project would be put out for bidding again with more specifics.

In other business Monday night, the board:

-- heard from Cyrus that a new prescription drug drop box had been added to the lobby of the Public Safety Building for disposal of old or unused medicine. The box is for old medicines in pill form, and no liquids or syringes may be left. Those dropping off medicine may tear off their personal information from the prescription bottles before depositing the medicines. The box is designed to help keep prescription medication out of the hands of non-patients and to prevent them from being flushed down the toilet or discarded in trash, which depending on the medicine can be an environmental hazard.